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CUTTER UNIT Application November 1, 1954, Serial No. 466,144

9 Claims. (Cl. 16d- 41) This invention relates to means for cutting a helical connector after the same has been formed and/or fed to connect adjacent rows of coil springs during the production of a bed spring or like assembly.

In bed spring producing machines, two helices are simultaneously fed to connect the upper and lower closed turns or convolutions of adjacent rows of coil springs. lt is an object of the invention to provide a connectorcutter unit that is adapted to be embodied in such a machine for simultaneously cutting the connectors after feed thereof-four such units being contemplated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cutter unit of novel design and in which a single actuator rst effects the cutting operation and then movement out of the plane of feed of the connector that is cut. The latter movement is necessary to enable a bed spring to be shifted, each time two rows of coil springs are connected without interference from the cutter unit.

The invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical -of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description. However, the drawing merely shows and the following description merely describes one embodiment of the present invention which is given by way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

Fig. l is a plan View of a cutter unit according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an edge view thereof, the View being taken in the direction of arrow 2 of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional View as taken on line 3- 3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the operating position of the cutter.

Fig. 5 is an edge view thereof, the view being similar to Fig. 2.

The cutter unit that is illustrated comprises, generally, a stationary base 10, a yoke 11 pivotally mounted on said base and carrying an adjustable guide 12 for a helix or the like 13, cutter means 14 carried by said yoke, and means 15 to sequentially actuate the cutter means and pivot the yoke.

The base is shown as a plate 29 that is adapted to be aflixed, as desired, to a bed spring machine to so position guide 12 that a helix being fed in said machine is guided to the cutter means 14. A pivot block 21 is secured to the face of plate 20, as by screws 22, the same having a transverse part 23 that connects ears 24 and is apertured at 25.

The yoke 11 comprises a yoke member 26 that is formed by parallel legs 27 connected by a head part 23 that delines a parallel-Sider bifurcation 29. The free ends States Patent 'ic i of legs 27 are connected by pivots 30 to the ears 24 of pivot block 21. It will be noted that the longitudinal disposition of said yoke is at 45 to the line of helix 13 and that the pivotal arrangement is such that the head part 28 moves in an arc transverse to the line of said helix.

The helix guide 12 comprises a member 31 that has a passage 32 through which helix 13 extends and is adjustably mounted on a pivot screw 33 entered in a support bar 34 to yoke member 26. Thus, guide 12 is pivotally movable with yoke 11.

The cutter means 14 comprises a fixed cutter 35 and a movable cutter 36 pivotal on a pivot 37 provided or carried on cutter 35. The latter is allixed to yoke head 23 as by a pivot screw 38 and a lock screw 39 engaged in a slot 40 formed as an arc with screw 38 as a center. Thus, the xed cutter 35 may be locked in adjustable position to bring its shear plate end 41 in proper position to enable the helix 13 to clear the same as it is being fed.

Said fixed cutter 35 may be accurately adjusted as by screw 42 carried by an offset portion 43 of the yoke member 26 and the adjustment locked by screw 39.

The movable cutter 36 is formed as a4 plate 44 superimposed on fixed cutter 35, a shear end 45 being provided on the end of said plate in normally-spaced relation to shear end 41 of the xed cutter, as shown in Fig. 1. Said plate 44 is shown with a cam slot 46 that is formed with two angular portions, the first, 47 being relatively steeper than the second portion 48. In other words, relative to the longitudinal dimension of cutter 36, cam slot portion 47 is at a greater angle than portion 48.

The sequential operating means of the cutter unit comprises a slide 49 that is longitudinally movable in bifurcation 29 and is guided by a bolt 50 moving along a slot 51 provided in mounting or base plate 20, a pressure fluid unit 52 afxcd to part 23 of block 21 and having an operating plunger or stern 53 passing through aperture 25 and connectel to slide 49, a cam follower 54 carried by said slide and engaged in cam slot 46, and a cam follower 55 carried by a side of said slide and engaged in a cam slot 56 provided in the leg 27 of yoke member 26 that is on the same side.

It will be clear that stem 53 and the slide 49 affixed thereto are movable longitudinally by introduction of pressure fluid into unit 52. Projection of the slide is obtained by entering fluid at 57 and retraction, by entering fluid at 58. Thus, when slide 49 is projected the follower 54, moving in the steeper or more angled portion 47 of cam slot 46 will quickly move the cutter 36 on its pivot 37 and bring the shear end 45 closely adjacent to fixed shear end 41. As the projection of slide 49 continues and follower 54 enters the less angled portion 48 of cam slot 46, the cutting or power stroke of cutter 36 occurs, since a relatively long movement of slide 49 is needed for a small arcuate movement of the moving cutter.

Dtring the iirst portion of the movement of slide 49, the follower 55 moves along the straight portion 59 of cam slot 56, the same being parallel to the path of movement of said slide. Thus, there is no pivotal movement of the yoke means 11. lust after the shear ends 41 and 45 have cut through a helix and before follower 54 reaches the bottom of cam slot 46, the follower 55 enters an angled portion 60 of cam slot 56 to effect pivotal movement of yoke means 11 in a plane transverse to movement of cutter 36 and, therefore, `offset displacement of helix guide 12 carried thereby. Hence, the cutter ends 41 and 45 are moved out of the original path of the helix, exposing the severed end thereof.

Now, said severed end may be twisted or curled, as desired, and the bed spring shifted so a new pair of connectors may be fed to connect the two next adjacent coil springs. After such shift, the connector feed may be instituted, the guide 12 having first been returned to the normal aligned position of Fig. 2.

While I have illustrated and described what I now contemplate to be the best mode of carrying out my invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification Without departing from the spirit and scopel of the invention. It is, therefore, not desired to restrict the invention to the particular form of construction illustrated and described, but to coverall modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A cutter unit comprising a base, a yoke having a pair of parallel legs, said legs pivotally connecting said yoke to said base, a guide adjustably mounted on said yoke, cutter means mounted on said yoke and adjacent to said guide, and a slide movable along said base and be tween said parallel legs for pivoting said yoke and operating said cutter means.

2. A cutter unit according to claim 1: said cutter means including a pivotal shear member, the pivot for the shear member and the pivot for the yoke being disposed on transverse planes.

3. A cutter unit according to claim l: said cutter means including a pivotal shear member, the pivot for the shear member and the pivot for the yoke being disposed on transverse planes, and means coacting with said slide including one cam contained by said pivotal shear member and a second cam contained by said yoke.

4. A cutter -unit according to claim 1: said cutter means including'a pivotal shear member, the pivot for the shear member and the pivot for the yoke being disposed on transverse planes, and means coacting with said slide including one cam contained by said pivotal shear member and a second cam contained by said yoke, and said cams being arranged to effect sequential operation of said yoke and said cutter means.

5. A cutter unit comprising a base, a slide movable along said base, a member mounted on a pivot on said base, a pair of cutter elements, one xed to the pivotal member and one pivotally mounted on said pivotal mem- 4 ber, and cam means for actuating the pivotal member and the movable cutter element, said cam means being controlled by said slide.

6. A cutter unit according to claim 5: the pivot for the cutter being transverse to the pivot for the cuttercarrying member.

7. A cutter unit according to claim 5: the pivot for the cutter being transverse to the pivot for the cuttercarrying member, and the cam means for the movable cutter being operative by the slide to move said movable cutter to cutting position ahead of the movement of the pivotal member by the cam means for the pivotal member.

8. A cutter unit comprising a base, a yoke having a pair of parallel legs, said legs pivotally connecting said yoke to said base, a guide adjustably mounted on said yoke, a pair of cutter members mounted on said yoke adjacent to said guide, one of said cutter members being a shear member fixed to said yoke and the other cutter member being a shear member pivotally connected to said yoke, and a slide movable along said base and between said parallel legs, said slide being operatively engaged with said yoke and said pivotal shear member.

9. A cutter unit according to claim 8: said slide engagement consisting of one cam means interconnecting said slide and yoke and a second cam means interconn necting said slide and pivotal shear member, said cams being arranged to effect sequential movement of said yoke and said shear member.

References Cited in the file of this patentV UNITED STATES PATENTS 475,761 Evans May 31, 1892 546,726 Bott Sept. 24, 1895 670,373 Keiser Mar. 19, 1901 871,532 Stanton Nov. 19, 1907 1,844,107 Sheperdson Feb. 9, 1932 FOREIGN PATENTS 12,723 Great Britain 1904 

